Janus Henderson Group PLC Trims Stock Position in Lennar Co. (NYSE:LEN)

Janus Henderson Group PLC cut its stake in Lennar Co. (NYSE:LEN) by 50.6% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 104,372 shares of the construction company’s stock after selling 107,094 shares during the quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC’s holdings in Lennar were worth $14,233,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company increased its stake in Lennar by 3.6% in the fourth quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 6,116,558 shares of the construction company’s stock valued at $834,115,000 after purchasing an additional 213,003 shares during the period. Pacer Advisors Inc. increased its stake in shares of Lennar by 22.0% during the fourth quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 3,271,319 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $446,110,000 after acquiring an additional 589,553 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its stake in shares of Lennar by 18.9% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 3,239,488 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $441,769,000 after acquiring an additional 515,378 shares during the period. Castlekeep Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Lennar during the fourth quarter worth about $218,533,000. Finally, Eminence Capital LP increased its stake in shares of Lennar by 43.4% during the fourth quarter. Eminence Capital LP now owns 685,225 shares of the construction company’s stock worth $93,444,000 after acquiring an additional 207,343 shares during the period. 81.10% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Lennar Stock Up 1.4%

Shares of NYSE LEN opened at $111.67 on Friday. Lennar Co. has a 12-month low of $98.42 and a 12-month high of $187.61. The company has a market capitalization of $29.46 billion, a PE ratio of 7.79, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.24 and a beta of 1.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a current ratio of 4.71 and a quick ratio of 1.06. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $110.70 and its two-hundred day moving average is $132.59.

Lennar (NYSE:LEN) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 20th. The construction company reported $2.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.70 by $0.44. Lennar had a net margin of 11.10% and a return on equity of 13.93%. The company had revenue of $7.63 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.44 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.57 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts anticipate that Lennar Co. will post 12.48 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lennar Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 7th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 23rd were issued a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.79%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, April 23rd. Lennar’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 14.57%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

LEN has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Barclays dropped their price target on shares of Lennar from $121.00 to $110.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, March 24th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price target on shares of Lennar from $141.00 to $128.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, March 25th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Lennar from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, April 18th. Wedbush reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $158.00 price target on shares of Lennar in a research note on Monday, March 17th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price objective on shares of Lennar from $141.00 to $120.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, March 25th. Fifteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $150.07.

About Lennar

Lennar Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a homebuilder primarily under the Lennar brand in the United States. It operates through Homebuilding East, Homebuilding Central, Homebuilding Texas, Homebuilding West, Financial Services, Multifamily, and Lennar Other segments. The company’s homebuilding operations include the construction and sale of single-family attached and detached homes, as well as the purchase, development, and sale of residential land; and development, construction, and management of multifamily rental properties.